II 110th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 3470 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES September 11, 2008 Mrs. Clinton (for herself and Mr. Ensign) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations A BILL To require United States Government representatives to present to the Government of Iraq a plan to establish an oil trust.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Support for Iraq Oil Trust Act of 2008.

2.

Statement of policy

It is the policy of the United States that— (1)the people of Iraq should benefit directly from a share of the revenues generated by the hydrocarbon resources of their country; and (2)the United States Government should present a plan and provide capacity and economic assistance for the implementation of an Iraq oil trust.

3.

Sense of Congress

It is the sense of Congress that— (1)the future of Iraq’s oil reserves remains at the heart of political reconciliation in Iraq; (2)ensuring that individual Iraqis benefit directly from hydrocarbon revenues is critical to promoting reconciliation and facilitating sustainable stability in Iraq; (3)the development and implementation of an oil trust could provide significant benefits to Iraq and its citizens, including by— (A)helping to demonstrate the values at the heart of democratic governance by giving Iraqi citizens a direct stake in the responsible and transparent management of the hydrocarbon resources of Iraq and the use and distribution of hydrocarbon revenues; (B)helping to diffuse the degree and concentration of control of the revenues generated from hydrocarbon resources, thereby reducing the opportunity for and magnitude of corruption; (C)facilitating bottom-up private sector development, which will be critical to Iraq’s future prosperity and economic diversity, by putting revenues from the oil resources of Iraq directly in the hands of its citizens; (D)helping to alleviate the incentive for smuggling or sabotage by providing individual citizens a direct stake in the amount of Iraqi oil that is legally produced and sold; (E)contributing to sustainable security by providing individuals monetary-resource alternatives to cooperating with militias, extremists, and other extra-legal entities; (F)providing additional income directly to individual citizens, thereby stimulating entrepreneurship and reducing the reliance on the ability of the central and provincial governments to deliver basic services and execute their budgets; and (G)serving as a model for revenue distribution to other resource-rich countries in the Middle East; and (4)the United States should provide assistance to Iraq for implementation of an oil trust.

4.

United States assistance to Iraq

(a)

Purpose

The purpose of this section is to stipulate limitations on United States assistance to Iraq for reconstruction purposes. (b)

Limitation

(1)

In general

Unless the Secretary of State submits to the appropriate congressional committees the certification described in subsection (c) within 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, 10 percent of United States assistance described in paragraph (4) that is otherwise available to Iraq through the Economic Support Fund shall be withheld. (2)

Additional withholding of funds

An additional 10 percent of United States assistance described in paragraph (4) that is otherwise available to Iraq through the Economic Support Fund shall be withheld for each additional 30 days after funds are withheld under paragraph (1) until the Secretary of State makes the certification described in subsection (c). (3)

Release of withheld funds

Any funds withheld under paragraphs (1) and (2) shall be made available upon submission by the Secretary of State of the certification described in subsection (c). (4)

Covered assistance

The assistance referred to in paragraphs (1) and (2) are the following funds: (A)Provincial Reconstruction Development Council Funds. (B)Operations and Maintenance Sustainment. (C)Targeted Development Program. (c)

Certification

The certification referred to in subsection (b) is a certification submitted by the Secretary of State to the appropriate congressional committees that— (1)certifies that representatives of the United States Government have presented to Government of Iraq representatives an oil trust plan that includes— (A)background on oil trusts, including those currently used by sovereign nations or territories and states within nations; and (B)options for different types of oil trusts that could be implemented in Iraq; and (2)includes a discussion on the steps necessary to implement an oil trust.

5.

Appropriate congressional committees defined

In this Act, the term appropriate congressional committees means— (a)the Committee on Armed Services, the Committee on Foreign Relations, and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; and (b)the Committee on Armed Services, the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives.